(no subject)

[David Lowenfels]

Hi Jennifer:
   I'm an MST alum, answering Hiroko's message. Well I haven't had a  
full-time job yet since graduating, only contract work. But here's my  
2 cents:
  It really depends on the job and the company. I think it is unfair  
for a company to ask you to make the first offer, especially if you  
are green. They should make an offer first, and you can say whether  
it is too low. It's all about negotiating. Depending on the exact job  
requirements, the salary could be anywhere from $60k-100k. Having a  
master's degree should boost it up a notch though. If possible you  
can also extrapolate a general starting place from previous hourly  
salaries: $/hour * 40 hrs/week * 48 weeks/year. You could also look  
for contacts in the same field who could tell you what they know  
about starting salaries.
   Here's some advice an experienced friend gave me about negotiating  
salary. There are generally four places where you can leverage for  
compensation: base annual salary, annual bonus (depending on company  
profits and supervisor's yearly review of your work), sign-on bonus  
(for instance you may need a car, or have to relocate), and stock  
options. If the base salary is not ideal, try and get more of the  
other goodies.

Good luck!
-David